Inattentional blindness: Why we sometimes overlook the unexpected
When we focus on something else, we may overlook unexpected objects.
Have you ever missed something obvious because you were focused on something else?
Why do we sometimes not see what is right in front of us?
Are you aware that you may not notice obvious, unexpected objects?
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Before you read on, watch this video: selective attention test.
Just do it, it takes less than two minutes and it may give you an very interesting experience.
In a well-known study people watched a video of two basketball teams, one wearing black shirts and the other wearing white. They were asked to count how many times the players wearing white shirts passed the ball to each other, ignoring the passes of the players wearing black. After about thirty seconds, a person in a gorilla suit walked into the middle of the basketball area, stopped to face the camera, thumped its chest, and walked off the screen. The gorilla was visible for nine seconds. Amazingly, half the viewers didn't notice it. How could they overlook a gorilla right before their eyes?
We consciously perceive only a small part of our visual world. When our attention is focused on one thing, we tend to not see other things around us, even obvious, unexpected ones that we might want to see. This psychological phenomenon is known as inattentional blindness. Most people don't realise this limit of human attention and assume that they would always notice salient, unexpected events. This is known as the illusion of attention. This mismatch between what we think we see and what we actually see can have profound implications for our daily lives.
Research has identified a similar phenomenon called inattentional deafness, where concentrating on a demanding visual task can cause us to miss an otherwise obvious sound. For example, if we are texting on our cell phone while crossing the road, we may not be aware of the sound of an approaching car. Similarly, focusing on the navigation system or a passing billboard while driving can make us oblivious to a cyclist's bell. This research suggests that attention has a limited capacity that is shared between vision, hearing and possibly also smell and touch.
Change blindness is a phenomenon closely related to inattentional blindness. While inattentional blindness involves missing something in a visual scene, change blindness occurs when people fail to notice a change in a visual scene.
The positive side of inattentional blindness and deafness is that it helps us ignore distractions and maintain our focus. For example, when we work in an office near a construction site, we can stay focused on our tasks, effectively ignoring the loud noises outside. Similarly, when we study in a busy cafe, we can focus on reading by tuning out the background chatter, allowing us to work more efficiently and productively.
Psychologists believe several factors contribute to inattentional blindness. The ability of the brain to pay attention and process information at any given moment is limited. It filters out unimportant or distracting information to focus on what’s most important at the moment. People also overlook the gorilla in experiments because its appearance in the middle of a basketball game is unexpected and unlikely to happen in a real-world setting, making us less likely to notice it.
Examples
👉 Studies have examined how pilots using head-up displays, equipment that projects information such as airspeed and altitude onto the windshield, perform in flight simulators. These studies have shown that pilots often miss something unexpected but important that appears in their field of view, such as an airplane on the runway.
👉 In a study, a group of participants followed a jogger through a park. Some were instructed to closely observe the jogger and count how many times he touched his hat. A fight was staged along the route. While jogging at night, only a third of participants reported noticing the fight, compared to just over half who noticed it during the day. Participants were much less likely to notice the fight if their attention was focused on the number of times the jogger touched his hat.
👉 Inattentional blindness can frequently lead to traffic accidents when a driver's focus is diverted, causing them to overlook crucial information. We may be talking on the phone while driving, mistakenly thinking we would notice a sudden event, such as a pedestrian stepping into the street. Or we might end up on closed or dangerous roads if we focus on our navigation system and miss clearly marked road closure signs.
👉 Magicians are masters of distraction. They know how to use inattentional blindness to make us miss important things that are happening right in front of us. They can make us focus on one hand while doing something sneaky with the other. By making us look in one direction, they can perform amazing stunts that seem impossible. It's all about playing with our attention to create illusions that make us wonder, ‘How did they do that?’
How to diminish the negative consequences of inattentional blindness
You can adopt several strategies to reduce the negative consequences of inattentional blindness and deafness:
⚒️ Increase awareness: Educate yourself and others about inattentional blindness and deafness and their effects to become more vigilant and mindful of your surroundings.
⚒️ Limit distractions: Reduce the number of distractions in your environment, especially when performing tasks that require focus. For instance, keep your workspace tidy and free from unnecessary items. Avoid multitasking while driving, such as talking on the phone, eating, drinking or changing the radio station. Turn off unnecessary notifications on devices and avoid using phones or other gadgets during critical tasks.
⚒️ Practice mindfulness: Engage in mindfulness meditation or exercises that focus on improving concentration and awareness. Practices such as focusing on breathing or body scans can enhance the ability to stay present.
⚒️ Take regular breaks: Take regular breaks during tasks to reset and refresh your attention, reducing the likelihood of missing important information. During breaks, engage in physical activities like stretching or walking. Physical movement can help refresh your mind and improve overall attention when you return to your task. Also get plenty of sleep to be more alert.
References
But Did You See the Gorilla? The Problem With Inattentional Blindness, Smithsonian Magazine, by Daniel Simons
The illusion of attention, The Guardian, by Mo Costandi
Inattentional Blindness in Psychology, Verywell Mind, by Kendra Cherry, MSEd
